1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a holder for a hollow vertical section of an architectural covering, such as a tubular flexible material for covering an architectural opening, like a window or door. This invention particularly relates to a holder for vertically arranged, hollow fabric louvers of a vertical venetian blind.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Vertical venetian blinds have generally been provided with a longitudinally- and horizontally-extending head rail, in which there have been several carriers that can be moved along the length of the head rail. Each carrier has typically supported a vertically-extending louver in such a manner that the consumer could move the blind""s louvers along the length of the head rail and also could rotate the louvers about their vertical axes. For example, carriers have each included a drive hub of a gear wheel driven by a worm gear, and the drive hub has supported a depending louver holder that has been adapted to support securely the top portions of a louver while the carrier has been moving and turning the holder and the louver. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,267,875.
Different types of louver holders have been provided in carriers for vertical blinds with solid louvers. For example, holders have held upper marginal portions of louvers: between their pairs of downwardly-extending pinching fingers (DE-Y 85 23 104, DE-A1 27 15 018 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,309); and also on hooks that are provided on their downwardly-extending fingers and that extend through apertures in the upper marginal portions of the louvers (U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,775).
However, such louver holders have been unsatisfactory for use with hollow vertical louvers as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,442. This is because such holders have tended to squeeze together the upper marginal portions of hollow vertical louvers and, for this reason, have not maintained the tubular shape of the hollow louvers over their entire height. For this reason, the use of a hanger plate, adhesively bonded to one side of the interior of such a hollow vane has been proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,442, but this has not been an entirely satisfactory solution.
In accordance with this invention, a holder is provided for suspending a hollow vertical section of an architectural covering, such as a hollow, fabric or plastic louver of a vertical venetian blind, from a carrier of a horizontally-extending head rail; the holder comprising:
a vertically-extending, generally cylindrical, male part having an upper portion, connected to the carrier, and a lower portion; and
a generally inverted U-shaped, female part having a horizontal top member with a pair of parallel, downwardly-extending legs on opposite sides and a downwardly-extending hole through it; the facing surfaces of the legs each having a first detent adjacent the bottom of the legs; the first detents extending towards each other and being adapted to be inserted through apertures in opposite sides of the hollow vertical section; and
wherein the lower portion of the male part is inserted in, and force fit within, the hole of the female part.
With this holder, the first detents of its female part securely hold the hollow vertical section by the apertures in the opposite sides thereof, and the male part of the holder securely holds the female part to a carrier of the head rail.
Advantageously, the top member of the female part is generally rectangular and generally planar, and it is especially advantageous that the hole in the top member is rectangular.
Also advantageously, the lower portion of the male part has:
a radially-extending shoulder with a lower surface that extends circumferentially and horizontally around the top of the lower portion; and
a pair of parallel planar vertical guide surfaces that are below the shoulder and or circumferentially opposite sides of the lower portion; each guide surface having, near its top, adjacent the shoulder and on circumferentially opposite sides of the lower portion, a radially-extending second detent; and upper surfaces of the second detents being horizontally coplanar.
In this regard, it is especially advantageous that the guide surfaces, on circumferentially opposite sides of the lower portion of the male part, are a pair of ramp surfaces which extend downwardly from between the upper surfaces of the second detents to the bottom of the lower portion and which curve inwardly of the lower portion as the ramp surfaces extend downwardly; and wherein the bottom portions of the ramp surfaces are parallel vertical surfaces. It is particularly advantageous that the distance between the free ends of the first detents of the female part is no more than about the distance between the bottom portions of the ramp surfaces and the bottom portions contact the free ends of the first detents when the lower portion of the male part is force fit within the hole of the female part, so as to prevent an aperture of the hollow vertical section from slipping off a first detent.
Further advantageously, the hole in the top member of the female part has:
a width, measured between the legs, that is no less than the width, measured parallel to the guide surfaces, of a radially outer surface of the lower portion of the male part, below the lower surface of the shoulder; and
a length, parallel to the legs, that is no more than the radial distance, measured transverse to the guide surfaces, between radially outer surfaces of the second detents.
In this regard, it is particularly advantageous that the vertical thickness of the top member of the female part, about its hole, is no more than, advantageously approximately the same as, the vertical spacing between the lower surface of the shoulder and the upper surfaces of the first detents of the male part, whereby the lower portion of the male part can be urged downwardly into the hole in the top member, so that the top member is securely held, in the assembled holder, between the upper surfaces of the second detents and the lower surface of the shoulder.
It is still further advantageous that each first detent has a generally cylindrical configuration with: i) its axis being normal to the leg, to which it is attached; a smooth outer surface; and ii) its outer diameter being less than, advantageously slightly less than, the diameter of one of the apertures, whereby the opposite sides of the hollow vertical section can slide easily apart on the pair of first detents after the first detents have been inserted in the apertures.
It is yet further advantageous that the hollow vertical section of the architectural covering is a deformable, generally tubular vane, especially a vane having three-dimensional and torsional stability along its length, particularly a vane made of a fabric having diagonal dimensional stability.
It is also advantageous that the apertures in the hollow vertical section are in opposite sides of an upper marginal portion of the hollow vertical section.
In accordance with other aspects of the invention, a head rail for an architectural covering, such as a vertical blind, and an architectural covering are provided, comprising the holder, just described.